News & Commentary on Financial Regulatory and Compliance Matters

A Greenberg Traurig Blog

Jack Gearan

Jack S. Gearan is a shareholder in the Boston office of Greenberg Traurig, LLP. He concentrates his practice in the areas of Labor & Employment and Litigation, where he defends companies and public institutions in labor and employment, business, and consumer actions, including class and collective actions. He is experienced in complex employment litigation and trials, and frequently handles state and federal whistleblower claims, non-compete and restrictive covenant litigation, trade secret, wage and hour litigation, and individual employee discrimination, harassment, and retaliation litigation and arbitrations. Jack also focuses his practice on handling pharmaceutical and medical device products liability cases.

Jack’s business litigation practice covers a variety of business torts, including misrepresentation, fraud, contract disputes, and claims under Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 93A – the Massachusetts unfair trade practices statute

In addition to defending clients in litigation when necessary, Jack provides counsel to senior management and human resource personnel on various employment law compliance matters, such as leaves of absence, exempt status classification under the FLSA and state law, employee discipline and restrictive covenant agreements. Jack is also regularly called upon by clients to conduct outside independent investigations of sensitive personnel issues or threatened legal actions. Additionally, Jack has advised companies regarding employment law in connection with various corporate transactions, including mergers, acquisitions, and reductions in force.

On Feb. 21, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the anti-retaliation provision of the Dodd-Frank Act (DFA) protects only employees who complain to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and not those who make only internal complaints. In a unanimous decision, the justices ruled in favor of Digital Realty Trust (Digital Realty), finding that … Continue Reading

On Monday, June 26, 2017, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to review whether the Dodd-Frank Act (DFA) prohibits retaliation against internal whistleblowers or only covers individuals who report to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC). This question has divided practitioners and lower courts alike since Dodd-Frank’s passage in 2010. As reported in our … Continue Reading

On March 8, 2017, in Somers v. Digital Realty Trust Inc., No.15-cv-17352 (9th Cir., March 8, 2017), the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the district court’s denial of the defendant’s motion to dismiss a whistleblower claim brought under the Dodd-Frank Act’s (“DFA”)’s anti-retaliation provision. In a 2-1 decision, the majority endorsed the approach of … Continue Reading

Recent SEC Fines On Aug. 16, 2016, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that it had issued its second fine in as many weeks concerning a company’s use of severance agreements that contain confidentiality and/or covenant-not-to-sue or release provisions that allegedly violate SEC whistleblower Rules. These recent SEC charges arise from SEC Rules, … Continue Reading

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Greenberg Traurig’s Financial Regulatory and Compliance Group brings together attorneys from various offices and practice areas to assist financial services firms of all types and sizes, as well as vendors to those firms, as they face regulatory, legislative, supervision, examination, licensing, compliance, and governance matters…
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Greenberg Traurig, LLP (GT) has approximately 2,200 attorneys in 41 locations in the United States, Latin America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. GT has been recognized for its philanthropic giving, diversity, and innovation, and is consistently among the largest firms in the U.S. on the Law360 400 and among the Top 20 on the Am Law Global 100. Web: www.gtlaw.com Twitter: @GT_Law.